fo honeft as to confefs that it is only a borrowed, a reflected light; that it owes much the greatest part of its prefent luftre to

THAT GREATER, THAT BETTER LIGHT

of the Gofpel, whofe province it is "to the day," and "to lighten every

govern man that cometh into the world †." Let us however fuppofe for a moment (what can never be proved) that mankind are now much better able to investigate truth, and to find out their duty by themselves than they were in former ages; and that reason can give us (the utmost it ever did or can pretend to give) a perfect system of morality. But what will this avail us, unless it could be shown that man is alfo perfect and uncorrupt? A religion that contained nothing more than a perfect fyftem of morality might perhaps fuit an angel: but it is only one part, it is only a fubordinate part, of the religion of a man and a finner. It would be but very poor confolation to a criminal going to execution, to put into his hands a compleat collection of the laws of his country, when the poor wretch perhaps ex

* Gen. i, 16.

↑ John i. 9.

5

pected

pected a reprieve. It could ferve no other purpose than to embitter his agonies, and make him see more clearly the justice of his condemnation. If you chofe to do the unhappy man a real fervice, and to give him any fubftantial comfort, you must affure him that the offence for which he was going to die was forgiven him; that his fentence was reversed; that he would not only be restored to his prince's favour, but put into a way of preferving it for the future; and that if his conduct afterwards was honeft and upright, he should be deeemed capable of enjoying the highest honours in his master's kingdom. But no one could tell him this, or at least he would credit no one that did; except he was commiffioned and authorized by the prince himself, to tell him fo. He might study the laws in his hands till the very moment of his execution, without ever finding out from them that he should obtain a pardon.

Such, the fcriptures inform us, was the ftate of man before Chrift came into the world. He had fallen from his original innocence. He was a rebel against God, and obnoxious

obnoxious to his wrath. The fentence of death had paffed upon him, and he had no plea to offer to arreft the execution of it. Reason, you fay, gives him a perfect rule to walk by. But he has already tranfgrefs'd this rule; and if even this tranfgreffion were cancelled, yet if left to himself, he may tranfgrefs it again the next moment. He is uneafy under his fentence, he wants forgiveness for the past, affiftance for the future; and till you can give him this, it is an infult upon his misery to talk to him of a perfect rule of action. If this be all that reason can give him (and it is really much more than it can give him) he muft neceffarily have recourse to Revelation. God only knows, and God only can tell, whether he will forgive, and upon what terms he will forgive the offences done against him; what mode of worship he requires; what helps he will afford us; and what condition he will place us in hereafter. All this God actually has told us in the Gofpel. It was to tell us this, He fent his fon into the world, whofe miffion was confirmed by the highest authority, by figns from Heaven, and miracles on earth; whofe life and doctrine

are

are delivered down to us by the most unexceptionable witneffes, who fealed their teftimony with their blood; who were too curious and incredulous to be themselves impofed

upon, too honeft and fincere, too plain and artless, to impose upon others.

What then can be the reason that inen ftill

refuse to fee, and perfift in " loving darkness " rather than light?" They will tell you perhaps that it is because the Gospel is fuli of incredible mysteries; but our Saviour tells you, and he tells and he tells you much truer, that it is because their deeds are evil." The mysteries and difficulties of the Gofpel can be no real objection to any man that confiders what myfteries occur, and what infuperable objections may be started, in almost every branch of human knowledge; and how often we are obliged in our most important temporal concerns to decide and to act upon evidence, incumbered with far greater difficulties than any that are to be found in fcripture. If we can admit no religion that is not free from mystery, we must, I doubt, be content without any religion at all. Even the religion of nature itself, the whole

D

whole conftitution both of the natural and the moral world, is full of mystery*; and the greatest mystery of all would be, if, with fo many irresistible marks of truth, Christianity fhould at last prove falfe. It is not then because the Gospel has too little light for these men that they reject it, but because it has too much. "For every one that doth evil "hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, left his deeds fhould be reproved +." The light of the Gospel is too prying and inquifitive for fuch an one. It reveals certain things which he could wish to conceal from all the world, and if poffible from himself. Nor is this all; it not only reveals, but it reproves them. It strikes him with an evidence he cannot bear; an evidence not only of its own truth, but of his unworthy conduct. The Gofpel does indeed offend him; but it is not his understanding, it is his conscience, that is fhocked; he could easily credit what it requires him to believe; but he cannot, or rather he will not, practise what it commands him to do.

* Vide Voltaire. Questions fur l'Encyclopedie. V. i. p. 190. Rouffeau. T. 7. p. 176. & T. 8. p. 17, 26, 32, 49.-12° 1762. Francfort.

+ John iii. 20.